Starting at a Sprint

We have only been back a few weeks and we've already had one mid-term! Not to mention the Marketing Summit Volunteer kick-off, our third Action Learning Project kick-off, and our mentoring program orientation! It’s been quite a busy few weeks here at Worrell.

The Schools of Business are humming with the approach of the Marketing Summit and the anticipation of the students. Not only is it a great experience for the teams chosen to compete against one another, it’s an opportunity for all the students to network with the different people that attend. I’m really excited about the opportunity to speak with some of the corporate attendees such as representatives from McKinney, BBDO, and case sponsor IBM. Also, the significant international component (teams from Canada, the U.K. and Spain) to the teams invited this year is exciting and will add a unique spin to the experience.

Our Action Learning Project is underway, and my team met with our client, ISP, once again this morning to gear up for our second-to-last project. It’s been really helpful to have a corporate perspective on the work we present and have projects from the corporate world. It enables us to have a preview of what we may be doing once out of school and also gain perspective into such a diverse industry.

The MAs are also buzzing about our new Executive Mentorship program, wherein each student works with a mentor from the business community around Wake (for most of us). I’m looking forward to some increased insight into the marketing agency world and learning a bit more about being a business professional. One thing Wake has taught me both in undergrad and graduate school is that your intellect is only one component of what you can bring to the forum, and Wake has done an amazing job of helping me build other strengths in my personality and character. The kick-off will be in the next week or so and we are all excited about finally meeting and connecting with the people we hope will really help us make those final steps into the business community.

Those final steps are only a few months away! The atmosphere of the MA classrooms is significantly different this semester as opposed to last. Far more aware of the looming May graduation and subsequent entry into the real world, the MAs have settled in a bit more and are very obsessed about job searching. Anxious, nervous, excited are all emotions that seem to reflect my feelings towards the final leave of school and the world of academia for the “real world.”

My job search has narrowed and with the help of the Career Management Center, I’ve been able to reach out and really pursue what I want to do. I’m slowly reaching out more and more to agencies and beginning to narrow down on locations and cities that I’m interested in.

For now I look forward to my afternoons when I have a chance to relax after class, write my thank-you cards, and review my resume to add in all my experiences over the past five months. And of course, get ready for the Marketing Summit that starts this Thursday!

~Jen Ratliff